Abstract
The aim was to analyze the measures proposed by the Ministry of Justice to face the new coronavirus in Brazilian penitentiaries and its applicability. This is a narrative literature review carried out through articles indexed in MEDLINE and SciELO, between 2016 and 2020, and data from the National Prison Information Survey. With the third largest prison population in the world, the Brazilian prison system represents an imminent threat to public health. The condition of vulnerability which the population deprived of liberty finds itself in was aggravated during the COVID-19 pandemic. To control intramural viral spread, visits and other activities were suspended. This isolated measure does not prevent the spread and subjects the inmates to a “double isolation”, which can aggravate psychological problems. So, expulsion was recommended. If overcrowding persists, other control actions are unlikely to be effective. The health crisis in the prison system is a structural problem, which makes it even more difficult to contain COVID-19. It is urgent to implement extrication so that other measures can take effect, avoiding a possible massacre. Meanwhile, the intervention of health professionals through the distribution of information about the importance of prophylactic measures could help to control this problem.
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